5 Easy Steps to a Side Hustle in Online Surveys

I’m a huge fan of side hustling. Having a side hustle is what helped us get out of debt, which is just one of the many benefits of side hustling.

However, if you’re totally new to side hustles, it can be a little daunting because of all the possibilities. Side hustles come in all shapes and sizes. Some folks have side hustles they do daily, like freelance writing. Some folks have seasonal side hustles, like snow shoveling.

If you’re totally new to side hustling and you’re not sure where to begin, the thought of launching into a highly-involved side hustle selling products or services can be daunting.

Having a service-based side hustle like freelance writing or digital marketing requires a regular commitment to learning and growing these skills, so they take some time to ramp up. Like any skill, writing and marketing take practice. You’ll also have to hustle regularly until you find clients.

Selling products via something like Amazon FBA can also take a lot of time to launch because of the time required to source products that are in demand and worth selling. There’s a lot that goes into selling products, beyond simply selling stuff on eBay or Craigslist.

If you’re at the very beginning of your side hustle journey and you want something easy, something you can do from anywhere, something that sends work your way, something that doesn’t require that you go find clients or make sales, you can complete online surveys for money.

Taking Online Surveys for Money

So what are online surveys and are they legit?

Companies need feedback from potential customers about their products and services, so they decide to create surveys to get feedback that could be helpful in creating new products or services or perhaps to improve existing products or services. Without your feedback, your opinions, your time spent taking surveys, these companies wouldn’t have the research they need to create useful products or services to meet our needs. Surveys are incredibly important.

Once a company decides to launch a survey, the company will reach out to a company like Opinion Outpost to launch their surveys and get feedback from potential customers. Opinion Outpost (aff link) incentivizes you to complete these surveys so that companies get the feedback they need. Pretty cool, right?!

For Opinion Outpost (aff link) pays you in points, which you can redeem for Amazon or iTunes gift cards, or in cash, which you receive via PayPal.

Just like anything else you could do for a side hustle, you’re investing your time to earn these rewards, so the more surveys you complete, the more you could potentially earn in rewards. What’s great about online surveys is that you can do them anywhere.

Waiting to pick up your kids from school? Complete a survey in your car.

Waiting at the doctor’s office for an appointment? Complete a survey in the waiting area.

Waiting for your kids to fall asleep so you can watch GoT? Complete a survey at home on your couch.

Waiting for…anything at all? Complete a survey.

Instead of spending time waiting, you’re leveraging your time to make money completing surveys. Monetizing free time that would have otherwise been spent on non-paying activities is one of the keys to a successful side hustle.

Steps to Sign Up for Online Surveys via Opinion Outpost

1. First, go to Opinion Outpost (aff link) to create your free account. There are four methods for signing up for an account: email, Facebook, Google+, and LinkedIn.

2. If you signup via email like me, you’ll see this screen indicating that you have to check your email to confirm your account.

3. It took about five minutes, but the confirmation email showed up in my inbox.

4. Next, there’s a screen requesting more information, including demographics and a password for accessing your account.

5. Success! I reached the first survey, the Welcome survey. It took about 10 minutes, but I finished the Welcome survey and reached this screen.

For completing the Welcome survey, I was already awarded points. As you complete more surveys, you’re awarded more points, points that you can redeem for those gift cards or for cash.

Time to Invest in Side Hustling

How much time you decide to invest in your online survey side hustle is important. Because taking online surveys is convenient and can be done from anywhere you have an Internet connection, take a look at your day.

Where are the gaps in between regularly scheduled activities?

What do you typically do in those gaps?

Are the things that you use to fill the gaps in your day useful to you?

Are the things filling in your day helping you achieve your financial goals?

Are you spending time scrolling through social media or watching TV (like I used to do) rather than use the time to make more money?

Jim Rohn said, “If you have enough reasons, you can do the most incredible things.”

What are your reasons for starting a side hustle?

Make a list of those reasons and refer to them regularly so that you stay committed to whatever time you decided to commit to your side hustle. If you decide to start with online surveys as a side hustle, be clear about your reasons for wanting to make extra money and then dedicate some time in your day or in your week to taking surveys.

Know that every step you take along your journey brings you one step closer to your goal. What step will you take today?

About Claudia Pennington

I'm Claudia Pennington and I've been in marketing for more than 10 years. Between downsizing our home and side hustling in digital marketing & SEO, my husband and I paid off 100% of our debt in just two years! Our side hustle has CHANGED our lives!